You carry not to hope something is going to happen, you carry because something could happen,” said Matthew Willhite, the son of a law enforcement officer who says he’s trained to use his 1911 .45 ACP.

While shopping with family at the 5th Avenue Mall, Willhite came across a security officer wrestling with a man outside one of the stores.

“All of a sudden he’s screaming gun gun gun,” he said retelling the story while making a mammoth sized pizza.

Police said 18-year-old Yan Bangout was trying to steel $1,200 worth in designer jeans from the Buckle Clothing Store when he was confronted by a security officer. During the struggle that followed, Bangout pulled out a gun.

That’s when Willhite pulled his own gun and pointed it at the armed suspect.

“Went on his side where he was looking at me, told him I had a gun and you’d better drop it. And he eventually did drop it,” he said.

Bangout was charged with robbery, four counts of assault and theft for the incident, police said. The shop owner said he considers Willhite a hero.

“I’m not a hero. I didn’t do it for anybody else. I was there, cops weren’t,” countered the pizza line cook.